Study reveals the UK cities leading the way for digital inclusion
Databanks up and down the country, like a food bank, are designed to provide free mobile data, texts and calls to people in need. The National databank was built with support from Virgin Media O2, with data also donted by Vodafone and Three to provide people with the ability to carry out basic necessities such as connect to love ones, apply for jobs, access essential health information.
This Uswitch mobiles analysis has looked at the number of National Databanks, Digital Inclusion Hubs, and Digital skill workshops on offer around the UK, compared against the average employment rate, and GINI coefficient in each of the locations, to determine where digital inclusion and exclusion is most prevalent.
With the Good Things Foundation aiming to help over 200,000 people by the end of 2023[2], Uswitch research reveals that the UK currently has a total of 2,712 databanks, digital inclusion hubs and digital skills workshops, with 361 of these being databanks.
THE LEAST DIGITALLY INCLUSIVE LOCATIONS
| Rank | Location | Poverty index (out of 100) | Digital Inclusion Hub (per 100,000) | Databanks (per 100,000) |
| 1 | Wakefield | 32.4 | 0.3 | 0.3 |
| 2 | Reading | 39.4 | 0.6 | 0.0 |
| 3 | Slough | 50.9 | 0.6 | 0.0 |
| 4 | Brighton | 33.8 | 0.7 | 0.4 |
| 5 | Kirklees | 48.2 | 0.9 | 0.2 |
| 6 | Wirral | 69.0 | 0.9 | 0.0 |
| 7 | Warrington | 30.1 | 0.9 | 0.5 |
| 8 | Portsmouth | 38.0 | 1.0 | 0.0 |
| 9 | Milton Keynes | 29.7 | 1.0 | 0.3 |
| 10 | Medway | 33.8 | 1.1 | 0.4 |
| 11 | Telford | 43.1 | 1.0 | 0.5 |
| 12 | Southhampton | 55.6 | 1.2 | 0.0 |
| 13 | Blackpool | 71.3 | 1.4 | 0.7 |
| 14 | Ipswich | 30.6 | 1.4 | 0.7 |
| 15 | Basildon | 50.0 | 1.6 | 0.0 |
| 16 | Crawley | 11.6 | 1.7 | 0.0 |
| 17 | Bournemouth | 33.4 | 1.7 | 0.0 |
| 18 | Mansfield | 51.4 | 1.8 | 0.0 |
| 19 | Oxford | 34.5 | 1.9 | 0.0 |
| 20 | Doncaster | 62.5 | 1.9 | 0.6 |
With the lowest combined poverty index (which ranks each location based on % of data banks, income deprivation, % of population having used the internet in the past three months, employment rate and GINI coefficient), Uswitch mobiles reveal that Wakefield is the least digitally inclusive city, scoring 32.4 out of 100.
For its population of 353,300, where 25% of the working population is unemployed, the city offers just one data bank and one digital inclusion hub.
Similarly, Reading and Slough have a slightly higher poverty index, however, on average 0.6 Digital Inclusion Hubs (1) per 100,000 people and no data banks offering free SIM cards to those in need.
It’s important to note that for seven of the top 10 least digitally inclusive locations, there is less than one Digital Inclusion Hub per 100,000 people, and less than one databank for all of the top 20, exemplifying the demand for increased support in these areas.
Interestingly, Milton Keynes scored below 30 on the poverty index in the least digitally inclusive locations, correlating to the number of Digital Inclusion Hubs, data banks and digital skills workshops it has (7) for its population of 297,000 and only one data bank. However, while Blackburn has the lowest unemployment rate (65.3%) out of all locations studied, the town has 3.88 Digital Inclusion Hubs per 100,000 population, highlighting the city’s effort to tackle data poverty.
THE MOST DIGITALLY INCLUSIVE LOCATIONS
| Rank | Location | Poverty index (out of 100) | Digital Inclusion Hub (per 100,000) | Databanks (per 100,000) |
| 1 | Manchester | 59.2 | 11.2 | 5.6 |
| 2 | Coventry | 43.1 | 10.7 | 2.6 |
| 3 | York | 38.5 | 8.9 | 0.5 |
| 4 | Gloucester | 16.2 | 8.3 | 1.5 |
| 5 | Newcastle | 66.7 | 6.7 | 2.3 |
| 6 | Leeds | 55.1 | 6.3 | 1.4 |
| 7 | Bradford | 59.3 | 6.0 | 1.8 |
| 8 | Liverpool | 65.7 | 4.9 | 1.2 |
| 9 | Hull | 69.0 | 4.9 | 1.1 |
| 10 | Leicester | 72.2 | 4.3 | 0.8 |
| 11 | Cambridge | 38.9 | 4.1 | 0.7 |
| 12 | Sunderland | 58.8 | 4.0 | 1.8 |
| 13 | Luton | 76.4 | 4.0 | 0.4 |
| 14 | Blackburn | 70.8 | 3.9 | 0.0 |
| 15 | Middlesbrough | 72.7 | 3.5 | 1.4 |
| 16 | Derby | 62.1 | 3.4 | 0.4 |
| 17 | Sheffield | 50.0 | 3.4 | 0.7 |
| 18 | Plymouth | 29.6 | 3.4 | 0.4 |
| 19 | London | 47.2 | 3.3 | 0.4 |
| 20 | Birmingham | 70.4 | 3.3 | 1.1 |
Combining a poverty index score of 59.2 and an average of 11.2 Digital Inclusion Hubs per and 5.6 databanks 100,000 people, Manchester takes the lead as the most digitally inclusive location in the UK.
Whilst London had the most databanks overall, with 38, when taking into account the capital’s population of over 8.7 million, London only have 0.4 databanks per 100,000 people.
Coventry sits just behind Manchester with an average of 10.7 Digital Inclusion Hubs per 100,000 people. The city has a higher employment rate and number of people accessing the internet in the past three months. However, the city has less than half of Manchester’s databanks per 100,000 (2.6), exemplifying room for improvement.
Liverpool, Hull and Leicester all have just under five Digital Inclusion Hubs and on average one databank per 100,000. With a poverty index score at the upper third of the rankings, the cities are putting in resources to accommodate those in data poverty. However, more could be done to bring them to compete with the likes of Manchester and Coventry.
Uswitch’s mobile expert, Rehan Ali comments, “Manchester has emerged as the most digitally inclusive location in the UK. The city has identified the demand for digitally inclusive services for its residents that cannot afford mobile data to access digital services or for those who need support with accessing them, due to lack of online skills. “
“Our data shows that while Manchester is considerably smaller than the country’s capital, London has considerably less digital inclusion hubs and databanks per 100,000 people. This shows the vast support and improvement needed for individuals and families around the country to carry out essential tasks that require an internet connection.
This research highlights the urgent need to address digital poverty and ensure that mobile data is readily available for everyone to access basic government, council and financial systems – regardless of their social class, unemployment status and personal arrangements..”
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